Supporting means



Jan. 17, 1933.

O. U. ZERK SUPPORTING MEANS Filed Oct. 22. 1928 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 r m 5. a g k 0 Z 6 m 6 w 1 a 0 0 6 0 w 7 j 1 2 f 1 IF i 4 A v 1..\ 111i Ln a z w z o 1 2 w 2 1 4 2 2 W w Jan. 17, 1933. o. u. ZERK SUPPORTING MEANS Filed Oct. 22. 1928 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 A "W M Jan. 17, 1933. o. u. ZERK SUPPURTING MEANS Filed Oct. 22, 1928 6 sheets sheet 4 Jan. 17, 1933.

o. UIZERK 1,894,457

SUPPORTING MEANS Filed Oct. 22. 1928 e Sheets- Sheet 5 mm 0502/ Z6 Zerk Jan. 17, 1933. u, ZERK 1,894,457

SUPPORTING MEANS Filed Oct. 22. 1928 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Mrs???- Qscar ll. Zerb Patented Jan. 17, 1933 oseaa u. znzeir, or cmoaeo, rumors surromzro Mme} Application ma come: as, ma. was no. Siam.

to tripods My invention relates generall pod for use in steadiness of the operator s hand. The present devices used to steady the pan and tilt motion of tripod heads is to use two sets of s eed increasing ears connected to a fiyeel.

Tripod beefs of this type are too large, heavy, complicated and expensive to be used by amateur motion-picture photographers. The novel means which I have invented accomplish this result in a very simple manner.

)ther objects of my invention are to pro- V: e: V

(1) An improved tripod and tripod head which is light in weiglht, which when set up is very ri 'd and whic is readil portable;

(2) improved tripod hea construction in which one part is universally mounted on the other and in which improved compressible means are utilized to prevent rapid accelerative movement of one of the parts relative to the other, thereby making it possible successfully to take harmonious pan and tilt views evenwith a very powerful telephoto lens; (3) Improved resilient means for compensating for the weight of the camera when it is m a tilted position;

' (4) Improved means for. causing equalv drag irrespective of the plane in which-the camera is moved;

(5) Improved means to do away with backlash upon reversal of pan and tilt movements;

(6; An improved camera guide-bar; (7 Improved distanceo erated means for clamping the tripod head, t ereby to hold the 5 camera stationary;

(8) Improved guide-bar means for compensating for the irregularities in the de cc of manual pressure applied to the guidear when taking panoramic views with the 0 camera, therefore making the harmonious movement of the guide-bar independent of. the human element" (9) .An improved quick detachable means Ifordconnecting the guide-bar to the tripod (10; Improved camera leveling means; (11 Improved means for transmittinga clampmilforce throu h a hinged guide-bar; (12) improve tripod of extremely simple construction which may be economically manufactured and which is conveniently operable for use in takin' motion-picture photo raphs in any desi manner; and

(13 Improved means for attachmg the camera to t e' head.

Other objects will appear from the following description, reference being" bad to the accompanying drawings, in WhlOh Fig. l is a rear-elevation of my improved tripod and head, the legs being shown in colla sed positio a lg. 2 is a left side elevation of the tripod and ea Fig. 3 is a plan view thereof, a portion of the handle belng shown in section and the end thereof broken away;

Fig. 4 .is a central vertical section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary right side elevation of the up er socket;

lFig. 6 is a p an view of a concave pressure p a a Fig. 7 is a side elevation of the friction drizg means;

igs. 8 and 80 together constitute a central vertical section of the upper ortion of the tripod head and guide-bar or andle;

ig. 9 is a bottom plan view of the upper socket with the u per ball removed;

Fig. 10 is a horizontal section taken on the line 10-10 of Fig. 11;

Fig. 11 is a vertical section taken on the line 11--11 of Fig. 10;

Fig. 12 is a right side elevation of the upper socket casting;

Fig. 13 is a vertical section taken on the line 1313 of Fig. 10;

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the clamp in o e 15 is a bottom plan view taken on the 9 my present invention but is more line -15 of Fig. 4," the leg sections being omitted;

Fig. 16 is a sectional view of the hinge plate taken on the line 16-16 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 17 is a side elevation o a tripod leg in artl extended 'tion portions of the. p y 1? awaytoshow the.

outer section being ken internal construction thereof;

Figa 18 is a plan view of the leg shown in .1 a e 19 is a central vertical section of a modi ed form of ball;

Fi 20 is a detail plan view of a washer forming part of the handle hinge joint; and Fig. 21 is a detail plan view of another washer forming part of the handle hinge 'oint. I The tripod of my invention is particularly designed for amateur and semiprofessional use although many features thereof might readily be inco rated in tripods and tri od heads for p20 essional use. The tri is ada ted to used in taking motion-pictures wi the camera held stationary or to take panoramic motionictures in any desired plane. The parti arly rigid construction and the novel means for eontro the movement of the camera make it possi le to take pan or tilt motion-pictures even with a very powerful telephoto lens. This is due to the gr extremely sensitive and eficient means which I employ to steady the rotative movement of the camera. The term pan shall herein be used to designate a panoramic view or the motion of the camera in taking a panoramic view in a horizontal plane, and the term tilt. all be used to designate the taking of a similar view or the motion of the camera in taking such a view in a vertical plane.

The t n'pod legs Referring particularly to Figs. 1, 2 4 and 15 to 18, inclusive, the tripod legs eac comprises a plurality of telescoping sections 20 the outer one of which has its upper end threaded to a head 22 and the inner one of which is secured to a foot 24 by a pipe threaded connection. Each of the sections except the outermost section is flared outwardly at its upper end at a very small angle and the lower end of each section except the innermost section is tapered inward] at the same angle. Thus, when the tripod e is extended, each of the flared portions wifi be rigidly and frictionally wedged into the inwardly tapered portion of the next adjacent outer section.

The leg structure does not form fa Hart of closed and claimed in my Patent, No. 1,672,596, dated June 5, 1928, and in my cod1 l pplication, Serial No. 208,219, filed ul 2 1927, and will therefore be but gene y herein.

The innermost section 20 has its upper end point.

y dis- 7 and has a bearin surface 72 coo en d by a hairpin sha ed s rin 26 which fri ciifii nally holds the le in dbllagsed osition as shown in Fig. 4, t e lower ends 0 the intermediate sections resting upon an insert 28, formed of a suitable rubber, fiber or other similar material, in an annular trough sha ed member 30 which is pressed over the out piece 24. The upper ends of the three innermost sections abut against a washer 32 made of rubber or similar material and secured in the head 22. This washer and the insert 28 form semiresilient buifers which tend to decrease the shock andnoise when'the legs are collapsed.

, The leg foot piece The foot piece 24 has a frusto-jconical surface 84 and a point 36. Means are provided to cover up the point 36 when the tripod is to be used indoors on a smooth floor or on ice or other similar smooth surface. -This means includes a metallic ca 38 which has a tapered bore complementa to the frustoconical surface 34 and a substantially spherical surface 40 which is covered by a thin layer 42 of rubber which is referably vulcanized directly to the metal 10 cap 38.

The cap 38 has an annular groove 44 and the foot piece 24 a corresponding annular oove 46 which lie in registry when the cap 15 placed upon the foot piece. A split ring or: C spring 48 normally carried in the cap 38 Wlll snap partiall 4 within the groove 46 when the cap is p aced over the point and thus rigli dly hol the foot piece over the his connection may, however, readily be broken merely by a sudden pull or twist upon the cap whereupon the spring 48 will be cammed out of the groove 46 into the groove 44.

The leg hinge As best shown in Figs. 17 and 18, the 'head 32 of each of the legs has an upwardly ex.- tending portion 50 havin two sidewardly extending trunnions 52 which rest in suitable bearing recesses 54 formed in a hinge plate 56. A plurality of bearingcap plates 58 secured to the bin e late 56 by screws 60 threaded in The head leveling means The hinge plate has an internall threaded downwardly extending cylindrica flange 68 rating with a hollow hemispherical portion 4 of a center post 76. A cap 78-has a flange threadedL, within the flange 68 and has an internally bored and threaded boss 80 into which a has a plurality of apertures 84 adapted to re-' ceive a spanner wrench.

A short handle 86 is pivoted at thelower end of the clamping screw 82, normall lying within a lon 'tudinal slot 88 formed t ereln,

suitable wa era 90 beingplaced at each side of the handle 86 to create friction and force the wing 86 to stay in any desiredposition. The upper end of the clamping screw 82 is hollowed and at its extremity base plus 92 pressed therein. The plug 92 is ad?) to engage a spherically concave sur formed within the hemilspherical portion 74 of the center post 76. e center of curvature of the surface-94 is identical with that of the spherical surface of the (portion 74.

From the above detailed escription, it will be seen that the center post 76 may be clamped in any desired position relative to the hinge late 56 by turning the clamping screw to ring the plug 92 in frictional glamping. contact with the spherical surace 94.

The ball and socket. and camera attaching means A hollow spherical ball 96 is formed of two steel stampings 96a and 96b, the stem ing 966 having a suitable annular groove a out its lower rim to receive the upper rim portion of the stamping 96a. The stampings 96a and 966 are pressed and soldered together to form a unitary rigid ball. The- A metallic socket 104 comprises portions 104a, 1046 and 1040, which are joined by bolts 106.. The bolts 106 have pins 108 passing diametrically theret-hrough, the pins being slidable in suitable slots 110 formed in the socket portion 1040.. These pins revent the bolts from rotating. A .plura ity of screws 112 pass freely through the 104a and 1046, respectively, and are t readed in the portion 1040. i

A camera attachin screw 114- has a square head 116 with a sma l hemispherical projection 118 thereon. The projection 118 rests in a suitable spherical recess 120 formed in the ortion 1040. A knurled thumb piece 22 which receives screw 114.

The screw 114 is, however, lon itudinally slidable with respect to the thum iece 122 so that downward pressure upon e screw the square head 116 of the ace 94 has a plurality of In rtions as a central square opening therein is transmitted directly to the projection 118 and its bearing socket and is not transmitted to the thumb piece 122. The thumb piece 122 is of substantially the same diameter as the width of the camera supporting plate 124 which is secured to the portion 1040 by four screws 126 (Fig. 3) e The socket portion 1046 is suitably recessed to receive-a con'cave com ressible socket half 128 which is referably eld in the recess by a plural ty 0 small pointed projections 129 formed in the bottom of the recess. 'The compressible socket 128 is preferabl made of a semihard compressed cork. Oter materials, such as packin rubber, hydraulic leather, bufialo leather, ense felts, etc., may be used if desired.

A compressible socket ,half 130 which is socket portion 104uand the end of which engages a concave ressure plate or clamp mg disc 134. This isc, best shown in Fig. 6,

136 extending outwardly from the peripheral ed e thereof. These lugs are slightly press fitte into suitable grooves 138 formed in the metallic socket portion 104a. The disc 134 is thus held a ainst even the slightest rotative movement w th reference to the metallic socket g ortion 104a but may be forced to the right ig. 4) to press the compressible socket half 130 agamst the ball. The compressible socket half is preferably held to the disc 134by suitable pointed projections 140 formed on.

the disc 134 but may be secured thereto by cement or-in any other suitable manner.

, Theball preferably has an extremely hard and an absolutely non-tarnishing surfaceflnish, such, for example, as a hard chromium plating, so that the harmonious dra between these compressible socket halves an the ball will be very uniform.

A spirit level 142, preferably of the type made of a single piece of glass, .is held within a bushing 144 threaded in a lug 146 which is integral with the socket portion 104b.

The camera balancing o'r compensating meme A pin 148 having a head 150 is welded or sweated in the top ofthe ball stam ing 96b and forms an abutment for a pair 0 springs 152, 154, the other ends of which rest upon the bolts 106, the latter having portions thereof cut away to form seats for the springs and to permit the use of a longer spring in the limited space available for the sprin s. These bolts may readily be remove and sprin of greater or lesser strength substituted' for the s rin 152, 154 when the tripod is to be use wit cameras heavier or lighter than normal.

Ill

sprin A semicircular trough shaped hardened steel member 156 forms a guide for the sprin 152, 154. Short pins 158 are riveted or o erwise suitably secured at the lower ends of the member 1040 and normally rest in suitable a rtures formed in the hardened steel mem r 156. The resiliency of the member 156 normally holds it within the socket member 1040 in the postion shown in Fig. 8 but it may readily be removed therefrom (after the socket has been removed from the ball) by pressing the lower ends of the steel member 156 inwardly with a suitable tool to free them from engagement. with the pins 158. The member 156 is so hard that the springs will not abrade its surface, thus eliminatin the possibility of metallic chips and dust ing oosened b the spring and falling between the ball an the packings.

The means or y clamping the metallic f cos 8 to the ball Means are rovided rigidly to clamp the socket to the This means comprises a pressure yoke 160 (Fig. 14) which has surfaces 162 to conform to the spherical shape of the ball 96. 'glhe yoke 160 is guided for limited sliding mpvement within the portion 1040 and encompasses the spring 154 and the guide 156 It is also guided by the cylin rical extensions 164 of a pair of screws 166 which are threaded in the metallic socket portion 1040. The portion 104cf.has an externallv threaded boss 168, the outer face of which has a plurality of teeth 170 spaced at intervals of '9l) degrees.

The yoke 160 is ads ted to be moved to the left F i :8 and 11) y means which will be descrl hereinafter. When thus moved to the left the surfaces 162 of the yoke member will cammingl engage the surface of the ball 96 and raise the socket 104 slightly relative to the ball. The metallic socket rtions 104a and 104b have zone-shaped su aces 171 and 173, respectively, the lower ortions of which will, when the socket is raised on the ball, frictionally engage the lower surface of the ball, thereby rigidly clamping the socket to the ball. vDuring this clamping operation the lower portions of the two comressible socket halves 128'and 130 will also slightly com ressed and will aid in boldin the socket xedly on the ball.

hen the yoke 160 is permitted to move to the ri ht, the said lower portions of the compressi 1e socket halves 128 and 130 will expand to normal position and the surfaces 171, 173 will no longer contact with the surface of Ithe ball but will take the position shown in 4.

To reiterate, the tripod has two sockets, a metallic non-resilient socket and a compressible cork socket. The metallic socket is used only for clamping the metallic socket against the ball but never for panning. The comguided for longitu tension 174 and in a hinge lug 188 which is 104a and 1046, so that there will be no metal to metal contact even if the most powerful drag pressure is applied by the drag regulating screw 162, since the harmonious an and tilt motion 15 due materially to the act that there is no metal to metal contact during the panning and tilting operation.

The hinged guide-bar A sleeve 172 having an extension 174 of reduced diameter pressed therein has eight recesses 176 spaced at 45 degree intervals about its left-hand end surface 8, 10 and 13 The sleeve 172 is secure to the boss 168, with four of its recesses 176 in engagement with the teeth 170 by a tubular clamping member 178 the left-hand end of which is threaded to the boss 168 and which has a shoulder 180 engaging a complemental shoulder 182 formed on the sleeve 172.

The clam ing member hassuitable wings 184 by which the clamping member may readily be mannaltliy rotated. A pin 186 is inal movement in the expressed into the right-hand end of the sleeve 172. A spring 190 compressed between the right-hand end of the extension 174 and a shoulder 192 on the in 186 tends normally to move the pin to the right to take up the plaly and prevent vibration (Fi 8).

he hinge lug 188 has a slot li e recess 194 formed therein to receive an annular pressure transmitting ring 196. The hinge lug 188 projects within the substantially circular recess 198 formed in the female hinge lug 200. A bolt 202 has a'cylindrical head freely rotatable in a complementary opening 204 formed in the female hin e In 200 and has a square shoulder 206 WhlCh ts in a square hole in a duralumin. washer 208 which is shown in Fi .21. The bolt passes through an opening in t e ring 196 and passes through suitable openings 1n brass washers 210 and 212 (Fig. 20) which are interposed between the relatively moving parts of the hinge. The bolt has a nut 214 which fits in a suitable countersunk recess in the female hin e lug 200 and lies substantially flush with t e outer surface of the lug. Due to this construction the nut 214 cannot unscrew through any movements of the hinge'lu 188 and 200. A tube 216 is rigidly secure to the female hinge lug 200 and its outer end has a. handle 218 threaded thereto. The handle 218 is preferably made of a suitable phenol condensation product, hard rubber or similar material,

ad has a rod can fixed thereto. The rod 1; an extension 222 of reduced diameter which isguided in mama hinge lug 20o and'is adapted to contact with the rin 196:

A tightly coiled spring ts within a cylindricalrecess 226 formed'in the outer end of the handle 218. The diameter of the recess 226 is referably slightly less than the normal outside diameter of the coil spring 224 so that the latter may be forced into the recess and be tightly retained therein due to the expansive force of the coils of the spring. A ball shaped auxiliary handle 228 is secured to the other end of the spring224 in a manner similar to that previously described.

The harmonious dra utilized in taking pan and tilt views is mainly due to the total absence of metallic dust and metallic oxide between the compressible socket halves 128 and 130 and the ball. Accumulated metallic dust acts, like a metal socket so that if some of the chromium should be abraded from the ball 96 by the compressible cork washers 128, 130 and the pressure action of screw 132 it would interfere slightly with the harmonious drag when taking an a. .d tilt views. Absolutely to precludef e possibility of pulverized metal or metallicdust from being deposited upon the compressible socket halves, I have provided a modified form of ball shown in Fig. 19. This ball 250 is prefera ly made of a hard glass and has its outer surface polished so as to be a perfectly smooth sphere. Other nonmetallic materia whichfdo-fnot abrade readily, such as porcelain, hard phenolic condensation p'roducts, or other hard material which is not readily abraded, may be used in place of glass;

The ball 250 has a central vertical bore 252 leverage may be had on the tripod head durto receive a center post 254. The boreis preferably made of slightly larger diameter than the portion of the post 254 which fits inthe bore, and the ball 250 accurately centered on the post and then cemented thereto. The post 254 preferably has its upper end hollowed and fitted with a plug 256 rigidly secured therein. The plug 256 is drilled to receive a'pin 258 which serves the same purpose as the pin 148 previously described. 7

With this modified form of ball there will not be any possibility of metallic dust or metallic oxide collecting upon the surfaces of the compressible socket halves and will therefore not impair the smooth harmonious drag effect between the ball and the compressible socket halves.

The use of the hinged guide-bar oration insetting up the tripod, after tl ie legs have been extended and separated so as substantially to level the hinge plate 56, is

to attach the handle (which is here intended tion should, however, be

tri head. The handle'is referablybent at :iangle, as shown in Fi 2 and 8,, for purposes as will more fully ereinafter ap- 208 and the female hinge lug The bolt 202 may be'tightened to provide an desired of friction on this hin e fricciently great so that there will be no relative movement bedegree tween the two parts of the handle at the hinge jolini:i when the tripod head is panned or ti te The bent handle has several advantages. When bent to theright, that is, the position indicated at A in Fig. 1, it is out of the way of the operator so that he may res-dill; sight through the finders of the camera wh' e moving the camera by means of the handle. A left-handed operator would podtion the bandle as shown in dotted lines at B, in 1, for the same reasons. When taking a motion picture in which a horizontal pan movement follows after a very deep or high vertical or tilt movement of the camera, such for example, as when taking the picture of a building, following u one side wall thereof and then traversing t e cornice, or in takin the picture of a waterfall in which the fi d of the camera is brought downwardly along the falls'and then is panned to bring the base of the falls and the scenery to the ht or leftof the falls in view, it is highly esirable that the handle be in a position as near horizontal as possible in order that full ing the panning movement.

When it is desired thus to take a tilt picture of a very high building as above described, starting from the horizontal, the handle would be set? in the position shown in fulllines in Fi 1. Thus, after the camera has completed t e upward tilt movement the handle will still be fairly close to the horizontal so that substantially the full levera e of the handle may be utilized in taking e pan view at the end of the very high tilt view. Similarly, if it is desired to take the picture of a very deep waterfall from the top of the falls, as above described, whereby it is nec-' essary totilt the camera through a relativel large angle, the handle will initially be place in thelposition shown in dotted lines at C in 1 wzf ierfall the handle will have been raised to slightly above a horizontal position and sub,- stantially the full leverage of the handle may be exerted in taking the pan view at the base of the falls.

- Similarly, the handle maybe adjusted at the intermediate 45 degree positions shown toinclude all of the parts 172 to to the 1 Thus, after following down the in dotted lines in F 1 to accomplish similar pur It wi be noted that the bandle 1s hin at ana preciable distance from the tri head, us when the handle is bent it will not interefre with the type of camera which has a large base.

Oamem attachingv operation movable with respect to the thumb piece 122 thus relieves the latter element of all friction due to the weight of the camera and makes it easy to turn the screw in attaching the camera to the tripod head.

Furthermore, by means of this construction a screw 114 of such size and thread to fit any desired non-standard make of camera, may readily be substituted without necessitatm the replacement of the thumb screw. screw may be substituted merely by removing the four screws 126 and plate 124 whereupon the screw 114 may readily be removed and another inserted to take its place.

Leveling the tripod head Assuming that the portion 74 is clamped in its socket 72 and having attached the camera, it is necessa accurately to position the center post 76. his is done by first alignin the groove 105 which is formed in the ct portion 104b with the horizontal great circle groove 100 formed in the ball 96. The socket 104 is then clamped to the ball 96 by tightening the guide bar handle 218. The clamp' screw 82 is then loosened so as to permit ihe spherical portion 74 of the center 76 to be shifted in the socket 72 formed in the hinge plate 56. The ball and socket may thus be moved universally with respect to said hinge plate until the s irit level 142 indicates that the parts are in orizontal po' sition. When this is the case the screw 82 is turned up so as to clamp the ball portion 74 of the center post 76 firmly in its socket in the hinge plate.

\ As shown in Fig. 1, the handle portion 86 of the screw 82 may be turned so as to be rpendicular to the axis of the screw, there- B to obtain the leverage necessary firml to c amp the hollow ball portion 74 in its soc et. The tripod head will then be in take a icture with the camera he d stationary an pointing in a horizontal plane.

Operation of taking pan views Assuming that the tripod head has been leveled as above described, a pan view is taken in the following manner. The guidebar handle 218 is unscrewed slightly so as to ition to relieve the clamping pressure of the yoke 160 upon. the ball 96. A certain amount of frictional drag is then a plied between the ball and the compressib e socket halves by turnin in the screw 182. The frictional drag t us caused between the compressible socket halves and the ball is suflicient normally to hold the metallic socket portion stationary on the head but will permit movement thereof upon ap lication of a fairly small force to the handle knob 228.

Since the ball has a very smooth and hard outer surface and is, with the exception of the grooves 100 and 102, nearly as rfect a sphere as may be produced, the ictional drag tending to revent rotation of the socket on the ball wi 1 be extremely uniform. The degree of drag may readily be varied by turnin the screw 132. This screw transmits t epressure directly to the plate 134 which is movable toward the ball, being guided b its lugs 136. Since the pressure of the sin e screw 132 is transmitted equally to hot cork socket halves 128 and 130 the frictional drag of each of these cork sockets upon the ball will at all times be the same.

The uniformity of the dra is due to the evenly distributed pressure 0 the com ressible cork socket halves which adapt t emselves to the unescapable sl' ht unevenness of the ball, due to the creation of a sliilt partial vacuum at the contacting surfaces tween the ball and the compressible socket halves and due also to the entire absence of metallic dust and metallic oxide on the contactm'g surfaces of the compressible socket halves.

Tue operator may pan the camera referabl by as in the auxilia han e 228 and movi i g the fatter in a ho sontal lane. In doin so the s ring 224 will bend fore the gui e-bar wi move and any small variation from a uniform movement of the oper ators hand will be taken up b the spring. The speed of pan movement of t e socket wi l of course depend upon the pressure exerted upon the auxiliary handle 228 but irrespective of the de es of pressure exerted the spring 224 wil compensate for the slight tremors of the operators hand.

It has been found that with the combination of the resilient handle and the adj ustable pressure cork sockets engaging a smooth and hard spherical ball, a very uniform pan movement of the camera may be obtained, even though the operators hand is unsteady. If,-for example, the operators hand is unsteady it may stop momentarily' however, the bent coil spring 224 will straighten out slightly and compensate for the pause in the movement of the o rators hand and thus keep the rigid portion of the guide-bar and" camera in motion. If, on the other hand, the operator should exert an increased pressure upon the knob 228 for a moment, this inslight irre creased pressure would merely bend the spring 224 a little further during this shprt interval without reactin upon the motion of the guide-bar. It wi 1- thus be seen that larities in the degree of force aplied to t e knob 228 will not disturb t e liarmonious movement, due to the compensating effect of the 5 ring 224 and the even frictional drag of t e cork socket halves. During such movement of the camera the hinge in the guide-bar remains fixed. Rather, a straight thin spring wire or other flexible and resilient means can be used in place of coil spring 224.

C'Zamping the socket to the ball As above intimated the socket may be clamped to the ball through operation of the main handle 218. This 13 accomplished by turning the handle 218 and screwing it onto the tube 216. Since the rod 220 is fixed relative to the handle 218, its extension 222 will engage the ring 196 and, irrespective of the angle at which the handle is bent, will force the ring toward the pin 186 and move the latter to the left (Fig. 8), compressing the spring 190 and moving the pressure yoke 160 to the left also. The surfaces 162 of the yoke will thus be forced firmly into contact with the adjacent surface of the ball. The metallic socket 104 will therefore be moved upwardly against the stationary hall and after com pressing the lower portions of the two cork sockets 128 and 130 the two lower portions of the zonal metallic surfaces 171 and 173, formed on the socket portions 104a and 1045 respectively, will be pressed against the ball, thus locking the entire metallic socket against the ball.

The pressure yoke 160 is limited to horiontal movement (Fig. 8) by the guiding surfaces in the socket 1040 and by the ends of the screws 164. Upon unscrewing the handle 218 from the tube 216 the spring 190 will expand to move the pin 186 to the right, thereby relieving the pressure on the yoke 160 and again permitting movement of the socket on the ball.

Taking tilt views, and operation of camera weight compensator When taking a tilt view the guide-bar may, if desired, but not necessarily, be straightened so that the tube 216 is in alignment with the sleeve 178 and the socket and camera moved on the ball in a vertical plane. During such movement either the spring 152 or 154 is compressed (depending upon whether the camera is tilted upwardly or downwardly). The springs 152 and 154 thus compensate for the weight of the camera as it is moved from its horiontal position.

It will be noted that as the center of gravity of the camera is moved further from its normal position directly above the ball 96 the ,ssv '7 compression of either the spring 152 or the spring 154 will become greater so that the camera may be tilted downwardly and then returned to normal position or tilted upwardly and then returned to normal position with substantially the same force appliedto the handle throughout the tilting movement. The springs thus tend to cause an even, uniform movement of the camera when takin tilt views by counterbalancing the weight 0 the camera.

The springs 152 and 154 are of maximum length, the screws 106 being partially cut away so as to make it possible to increase the normal length of the springs. The spring guide member 156 forms a retainer for the spring coils to maintain them in arcuate alignment and permits the coils to move fairly freely relative to one another due to its low coefficient of friction. The friction is caused by the tendency of the bent spring to press in an outward direction. After removal of the socket from the ball the member 156 may readily be removed since it is held in the yoke 1040 merely by the pins 158 which are held into small holes in the member 156 by its own resiliency. Springs of different strength suited to the weight of the camera with which the tripod is to be used may then be easily substituted.

When taking tilt views the moment arm of the frictional drag exerted by the cork sockets 128 and 130 would normally be slightliy less than the moment arm of the frictional rag of these packings when taking a pan view, due to the shape of the packings and to the position in which they are located in the socket. I have provided novel means for compensating for this difference in frictional drag. These means comprise the grooves 1.00 and 102 formed in the surface of the ball 96. These grooves are sufficiently deep so that the compressible cork socket halves will be pressed partially into these grooves.

lVhcn the tripod head 18 panned the panning drag would be the same even if the grooves 104 and 100 were not formed in the ball but when the tripod head is tilted the frictional drag is increased due to the fact that portions of the compressible cork socket halves are forced into the grooves and have to be compressed again when they are moved out of the grooves. Thus when taking a pan view the small ortions of the co rk sockets which lie within t e grooves will stay within the groove throughout rotation of the socket 104 about the ball. When, however, the socket is rotated about the horizontal axis of the ball during a tilting movement the small portions of the cork packings which lie in these grooves will necessarily be forced out of the grooves and thus an additional frictional drag will be present during tilt movement of the socket. This added drag is just suflicient to compensate for the abovementioned diiierence in the pan and tilt moment arms of the frictional drag exerted by the packings. Stated in another way the cork sockets movein the direction of the grooves when the camera is panned but move in a direction transversely or obliquel to the grooves when the camera. is mm or rotated in other than a horizontal plane, and the grooves in the latter instances efiect increased friction.

The movement of the camera is not limited to rotation in horizontal or vertical planes but may be moved in any desired 0 lique plane. uring movement in an oblique plane the ooves function to compensate for the varying frictional drag of the packings, the

- degree of increase of the dra being of course dependent upon the angle 0 obliquity.

General operation After the taking of the picture has been completed the camera.and the handle are preferably detached, the handle being straightened and removed merely by. unscrewing the sleeve 178, the wing 86 of the screw 82 turned to the vertical, and the tripod legs may then be colla sed by placing the legs in substantial para lehsm and bringing them downwardly against the ground with a sharp blow, whereupon the innermost sectlon of each leg will hold the leg in collapsed position through its frictional enga ement with the s ring 26. During this col apslng operation t e rubber or other resilient buffers 28 and 32 will absorb a large portion of the shock and eliminate excessive noise. The rubber foot pieces 38 40 may of course be attached or removed from the o1nts24, depending upon the condition o the ground or floor upon which the tripod is to stand.

My invention, using a com ressible socket, may readily be applied to ot er types of devices for universally mounting a camera, such, for example, devices havin two swivels perpendicular to each other. n such devices the cork or similar socket member may be interposed between the relatively rotating parts and means provided to compress the cork or other materlal. Similarly the flexible resilient guide-bar herein disclosed is not limited to use in the particular combination disclosed but ma read1ly be employed to advantage in triplo heads using steadying means other than t e compressible socket disclosed herein.

The above described tripod thus accomplishes the objects initially stated, forming a readily portable device which may quickly be extended and collapsed, which is capable of producing uniform panoramic motion of the camera, which compensates for the weight of the camera when it is off center, which is convenient, may be readily manufactured, and which may be readily adapted for varyin g conditions of use.

The invention is capable of wide variation within equivalent limits and I contemplate such variation as may be desirable or useful in the particular adaptation of the invention shown, or in its adaptation to other devices. I do not restrict myself in any unessential particulars, but what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a tri 0d, thecombination of a post member, a ba 1 member rigid? secured thereto, a socket member surroun i compressible element secured to one of said members, means to force one member against the other to create friction, means to attach a camera or other instrument to one of said members, and other means connected to one of said members for clamping said member against the other member by application of a force in a direction perpendicular to that applied by said forcing means.

2. In a tripod, the combination of a post, a ball rigidly secured thereto, a socket surrounding said ball, a compressible packing material placed between said socket and ball, a plurality of points projecting from said socket into said packing to hold the latter in position, a screw threaded in said socket adapted to force said packing into engagement with said ball, and means to attach a camera or other instrument to said socket.

3. In a tripod, the combination of a post, universally adjustable means for su porting said post, a ball rigidly secured t ereto, a socket surrounding sai ball, a pair of resilient packings between said socket and ball, a movable pressure plate behind one of said packings, means for preventing rotation of said plate adjustable screw means carried by said socket, engaging said pressure plate and operable therethrough to force said packin into frictional engagement with said ba 1. means to attach a camera to said socket, and handle means connected to said socket for moving the latter relative to said ball.

4. In a tripod, the combination of a normally stationary ball, a socket surrounding the major ortion of said ball, a guiding handle secured to said socket, means operable by the movement of said handle to clamp said socket to said ball, and additional means for adjustably clamping said socket to said ball by exerting a clamping pressure at right angles to that exerted by said handle operated clamping means.

5. In a tripod head. the combination of a normally stationary ball. a socket surrounding said ball and normally universally movable relative thereto, a compressible packing between said socket and ball, and means on said socket to vary the fri tion between said packing and said ball only when said socket is moved in particular different planes relative thereto.

6. In a tripod head, the combination of a normally stationary ball, a socket surroundng said ball, a

when said socket is moved in particular different planes.

7. In a tripod head, the combination of a normally stationary ball, a socket surrounding said ball, a compressible packing between said socket and ball, and means comprising a plurality of horizontal parallel grooves in said ball to increase the friction between said packing and said ball when said socket is rotated in a plane transverse or oblique to the planes of said grooves as compared with the friction offered when said socket is rotated about an axis perpendicular to the planes of said grooves.

8. In supporting means, the combination of a relatively stationar element, an instrument supporting member rotatable about the horizontal axis of said element, a projection on said element, an arcuate recess formed in said member, a pair of compression springs, positioned in said arcuate recess, each having one end abutting against said member and its other end abutting against said projection, whereby compensation is made for the weight of the camera when the member is tilted in a vertical plane, and a quick detachable liner in said recess forming a bearing surface for said springs, said liner being held in said recess by its resiliency.

9. In a tripod, the combination of a relatively stationary element, a camera supporting member rotatable about the horizontal axis of said element, a projection on said element, an arcuate recess formed in said member, a hard retainer in said recess, and a pair of compression springs positioned within said arcuate recess and guided by said retainer, each of said springs having one end abutting against said supporting member.

10. In a tripod, the combination of a normally stationary element, a camera supporting member universally secured thereto a guide bar detachably secured to said socket member, said guide bar being hinged at a point intermediate its extremities, and means for clamping said member to said element, said means being operable through the hinge of said guide bar.

11. In supporting means the combination of a normally stationary element, a camera supporting member universally secured thereto, a bendable guide bar detachably secured to said socket member, said guide bar having a high tension hinge intermediate its ends, and means for clamping said member to said element, said means being operable through the bent portion of said guide bar.

12. In a tripod, the combination of a normally stationary element, a camera supporting member universall secured thereto, a hinged guide bar detac ably secured to said socket member, and said hin ed guide bar being adapted to be bent, and iction clamping means for holding said bar in bent position.

13. In supporting means, the combination of a normally stationary element, a supporting member universally secured thereto, a tubular ufde bar connected to said supporting mem er, an extension portion hinged so as to be capable of being bent at an angle greater than 30 relative to the axis of said bar, and movable elements contained in said extension portion to transmit force from said extension portion to the guide bar.

14. In supporting means, a relatively stationary element, a member rotatably mounted thereon, and a guide bar secured to said member, said guide bar comprising a rigid portion and a resilient portion, movable throu h an appreciable angle relative to said rigid portion, said resilient portion comprising a tightly coiled spring. a

15. In a panoramic tripod head, a relatively stationary element, a member rotatably mounted thereon, and a guide bar secured to said member, said guide bar comprisng a main handle adapted to be rigidly connected to said member, resilient means secured at the end of said handle and forming an extension thereof, and an auxiliary handle secured at the other end of said resilient means, and resilfent means formin the sole connection between said main handle and said auxiliary handle.

16. In a panoramic tripod head, a relative 1y stationary element, a member rotatably mounted thereon, and a guide bar secured to said member, said guide bar comprising a main handle adapted to be rigidly connected to said member, a closel wound coil spring secured at the end of sald handle and forming an extension thereof, and an auxiliary handle secured at the other end of said spring.

17. In a panoramic tripod head, the combination of a relatively stationary ball, a socket surrounding said ball, a compressible packing between said ball and socket, resilient means tending to restrain movement of said socket, a guiding handle rigidly secured to said socket, and a resilient flexible extension on said handle.

18. In a camera supporting means, the combination of a relatively stationary element, a camera carrying member universally connected thereto, friction means between said element and member, said means offering different amounts of frictional resistance when said member is moved in different plants relative to said member, and means to compensate for said differences in frictional resistance by increasing the frictional resistance when said member is moved in certain directions.

19. In a camera supporting means, a umversal joint composed of a stationary membet and a movable member, compressible means interposed between said members to cause harmonious movement when said members are relatively moved, ressure applying means to force once of sai members against the other member, and other means cooperating with one of said members and movable therewith without play when said member is moved with respect to the other member, said means being laterally movable relative to the member with which it cooperates to force said members in tight frictional clamping engagement with one another.

20. In a tripod, thecombination of a ball having a hard smooth external surface, a pair of socket halves surrounding said ball. means permanently to secure said socket halves together, a pair of packing rings between said socket halves and said ball, one of said rings being located on each side of said ball, means to vary the pressure of the packing upon said. ball, and additional means rigidly to clamp said socket said ball, said pressure varying means and said additional means being operable to apply pressure in difl'erent dire?- tions.

21. In supporting means, a relatively ste tionary element, a member universally mounted thereon, and a guide bar secured to said member, said bar having a coiled spring portion sufiicientiy yieldable to permit swing ing of its free end through an appreciable angle relative to said member.

In witness whereof, i hereunto subscribe my name this 19th day of October, 1928.

OSCAR U, ZERKL CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. I, 894, 457

January 17, 1933 OSCAR U. ZERK It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the i above numbered patent requiring correction as follows:

Page 6, line 25, after "A" insert, the word "new"; page 9, line 58, claim 11, for "tension" read "friction", and line 96, ciaim 15, for "and" read "said"; page 10, line 23, claim 20, after "socket" insert the word "to"; and that the said Letters Patent shouid be read with these corrections therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and scaled this 14th day of March, A. D. 1933.

(Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents.

bet and a movable member, compressible means interposed between said members to cause harmonious movement when said members are relatively moved, ressure applying means to force once of sai members against the other member, and other means cooperating with one of said members and movable therewith without play when said member is moved with respect to the other member, said means being laterally movable relative to the member with which it cooperates to force said members in tight frictional clamping engagement with one another.

20. In a tripod, thecombination of a ball having a hard smooth external surface, a pair of socket halves surrounding said ball. means permanently to secure said socket halves together, a pair of packing rings between said socket halves and said ball, one of said rings being located on each side of said ball, means to vary the pressure of the packing upon said. ball, and additional means rigidly to clamp said socket said ball, said pressure varying means and said additional means being operable to apply pressure in difl'erent dire?- tions.

21. In supporting means, a relatively ste tionary element, a member universally mounted thereon, and a guide bar secured to said member, said bar having a coiled spring portion sufiicientiy yieldable to permit swing ing of its free end through an appreciable angle relative to said member.

In witness whereof, i hereunto subscribe my name this 19th day of October, 1928.

OSCAR U, ZERKL CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. I, 894, 457

January 17, 1933 OSCAR U. ZERK It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the i above numbered patent requiring correction as follows:

Page 6, line 25, after "A" insert, the word "new"; page 9, line 58, claim 11, for "tension" read "friction", and line 96, ciaim 15, for "and" read "said"; page 10, line 23, claim 20, after "socket" insert the word "to"; and that the said Letters Patent shouid be read with these corrections therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and scaled this 14th day of March, A. D. 1933.

(Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents. 

